


breaking regulation

by maethebassclarinetist



Series: Joanna [2]
Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-27
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-06 21:28:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,860
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26135767
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maethebassclarinetist/pseuds/maethebassclarinetist
Summary: yes i know it's a shitty title, if anyone has any suggestions for a better one lmkBones has gone missing on Beltane VII. Jim and Joanna are breaking a lot of rules to bring him back.
Relationships: James T. Kirk/Leonard "Bones" McCoy
Series: Joanna [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1897555
Comments: 12
Kudos: 24





	1. Chapter 1

Marla was calling for her. “Joanna! You’re getting a call from the  _ Enterprise _ !

Joanna came charging down the stairs. “Sorry, Marla, I forgot I left my communicator down here. Thank you, I love you see you later!!” She threw herself down onto her bed and hit  _ Accept Call _ .

“Hey— wait. You’re not my dad.”

“Miss McCoy. I’m Captain Kirk, we met a couple years ago while your dad and I were at the Academy. I need to talk to you about your father.”

“...what happened.”

“Miss McCoy—”

“Oh my god, he’s dead, isn’t he?!”

“Joanna, listen to me. He beamed down to Beltane VII three days ago. Their planet has been experiencing severe civil unrest, and your father took a medical team down to assist the refugees. 72 hours ago, we lost contact with him and his entire team. Legally, I have to declare him dead.”

“What is that supposed to mean? Legally?! So you don’t actually  _ know _ that he’s dead, you’re just gonna leave him down there and—”

“Joanna! I’m not leaving him down there!”

“Well, what are you going to do then? If you legally declare him dead doesn’t that mean you can’t keep looking for him? Doesn’t that mean Starfleet gives you new orders?”

“We’ve been assigned to go patrol the Canopus system, but—”

“Jim, the Canopus system is a week away from Beltane IX!” 

He sat back, stunned.  _ She sounds  _ exactly _ like him...  _

To her credit, she sat back, cheeks pink. “I’m sorry, sir, that was inappropriate of me.”

He shook his head. “Don’t apologize. You have every right to be upset with me. As I was saying earlier, we have been ordered to the Canopus system. However, Miss McCoy, I can assure you I have no intention of leaving Beltane until your father is found. As to what state he is found in… well, I can’t make any promises. Please understand, we are doing  _ everything _ in our power to locate the medical team.”

“I understand. Again, sir, I’m sorry for yelling. I know you’re probably under a lot of stress too right now since you’re disobeying orders and all that.”

“Thank you, Miss McCoy. Now, if possible, I’d like to speak to your mother now?”

“No, she’s off-planet for work. Marla’s here, though, if you want to talk to her?”

“Yes, that’s all right.”

While she was gone, Jim looked around at her room. From his admittedly limited vantage point, he could see her homework scattered on the bed. Federation history, American literature, Vulcan language… was that non-Euclidean geometry?

Before he could ponder that further, Joanna returned with Marla. “Can I stay? Or do you have to have adult conversations without me?”

“I’d like to talk to your stepmom alone, if that’s okay.”

“Fine.”

She turned on her heel and left the room. Marla sat down on the bed, frowning. “What’s this about, Captain?”

“It’s Leonard. He…” Jim trailed off. “He’s missing.”

“...you told Jo already?”

“Yes. She’s the first person on his list, in the event that he is declared dead.”

“Dead? I thought he was just missing.”

“He’s been missing for 72 hours. Legally, I have to declare him dead. However, I don’t believe that he’s dead. He’s smart enough not to get caught by the rebels. I’m not leaving this planet until he’s found.”

“How are you handling all this, Captain?”

My priority is to find Bones and return him safely to his daughter.”

“Why are you telling me all this?”

“Mrs. Collins, to put it plainly, someone needs to be there for Joanna. I don’t think she’s taking this well at all.”

Marla nodded. “Jocelyn’s on Rigel IV handling a case. I’ll keep taking care of Jo.”


	2. Chapter 2

Uhura turned around in her seat. “Captain, you’re receiving a personal transmission from Earth. It’s not the admiralty, but it is coming from San Francisco.”

“Send it to my quarters, Lieutenant, I’ll receive it there.”

“Yes, sir.”

Jim stood and left the bridge.  _ Who could be calling at this hour? It’s 2 AM in San Francisco… _

He sat down at his desk. “Uhura, I’m ready to receive that call.”

“Piping it through now, sir.”

As Jim watched, the face of Marla Collins filled his screen. “Captain? Are you there?”

“I’m receiving you, Mrs. Collins. What’s going on?”

“It’s Jo, she’s missing, I don’t know when she left but she’s going there, and—”

“Marla, slow down. She’s going where?”

“Beltane VII. I checked her credit account, she booked passage on a Vulcan freighter. She’s on her way to you now and oh God I lost my wife’s kid—”

“Mrs. Collins, try to relax. If she’s on a Vulcan ship she should be safe, okay? Once she gets here, I’ll take care of her on the Enterprise until you arrive.”

“But you’re busy looking for Leonard, and she’s just a 13-year-old, she can’t just go to deep space by herself!”

“Marla. She’s stronger than you think she is.”

“Well, no offense, Captain, but how the hell would you know?”

“I don’t know Joanna like you do, Mrs. Collins. I mean, you’ve raised her with Jocelyn for the past 3 years. However, I do know one thing.”

“What’s that?”

“She’s her father’s daughter. If any 13-year-old can handle deep space travel, it’s her. Besides, she’ll be safe on a Vulcan ship.”

“But—”

“Please, Mrs. Collins. There’s nothing either of us can do about it now.”

“Okay. I’m on my way to Beltane. Please keep her safe, Captain.”

“Of course. I’d never let anything hurt her.”

_ 12 hours later _

Joanna smiled at T’Pril, the captain of the Vulcan ship. “Thank you for taking me here. Can you beam me down to Beltane VII now?”

“Miss McCoy, I have been asked to beam you aboard the  _ Enterprise _ .”

“...you don’t have to do that.”

“Due to your status as a minor and the fact that this was requested by your stepmother— your legal guardian— you have no choice in the matter. I apologize, Miss McCoy, but you will be transported to the  _ Enterprise _ .”

Joanna narrowed her blue eyes. “Not if I can help it.”

T’pril raised an eyebrow. “Miss McCoy, please do not make this difficult on yourself.”

“I can’t go to the  _ Enterprise _ . I have to go find my dad.”

T’Pril knelt next to her. “Joanna, there are Starfleet personnel searching for your father as we speak. It is illogical to assume that you, with no training, can do better than they.”

“They’ve been looking for him for 91 hours. They haven’t found him yet.”

“Miss McCoy, imagine how your father would react if he knew that you willfully placed yourself in harm’s way. Please, step onto the transporter pad so that Skan may beam you onto the  _ Enterprise _ .”

Joanna reluctantly walked over to the pad. She stood quietly and watched the Vulcan freighter disappear.

She reappeared in the transporter room. Jim turned around from where he had been pacing. “Joanna!”

He ran over and grabbed her shoulders. “Your parents are worried sick, Joanna! What on Earth were you thinking? Bones is missing, we can’t have you going missing too!”

“I just wanted to help! It’s been almost four days since he went missing!”

“You think I have time to worry about a 13-year-old kid? I’ve got enough to deal with just trying to keep the admiralty off my ass! Jesus Christ, what the hell is wrong with you?!”

“It’s not like you were finding him!”

“What do you think I’ve been trying to do, Joanna?!”

She jerked away angrily. “Just because you’re in love with him doesn’t give you the right to yell at me! I just want to help find him!” She turned and stormed out of the transporter room.

Jim stood stock-still. “I… I’m not in love with him.”

Uhura shot him a glance of disbelief as she followed Joanna.

“Joanna!” she called, “Please, wait.”

The girl shook her head, tears streaming down her face. “No. I’m going somewhere  _ he _ can’t yell at me.”

“Joanna, please try to understand—”

“Understand what? I think I understand everything  _ perfectly _ , ma’am!”

“Joanna, at least let me—”

“He’s always been in love with Dad, hasn’t he? That’s why he always hung around, that’s why he got drunk so much—”

“Joanna, you need dinner and quarters to sleep in. We can talk about this later, ok?”

“Why, because I’m too young? You’re just trying to distract me! I want to help find my dad!”

Uhura sighed. “Please, Joanna. Both you and the captain are under a lot of stress. You need rest.” She walked closer and gently took Joanna’s hands. “Come on,  _ kidege _ . Let’s go get something to eat.”

“But… my dad…”

“ _ Kidege, _ there’s nothing you can do while you’re tired and hungry. Now, your quarters are right here. Let’s get you cleaned up, you’ve had a long trip from Earth.”

Joanna stood in front of Uhura, trembling. Finally, she nodded. Uhura smiled softly and escorted her into the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kidege — little bird — Swahili


	3. Chapter 3

In the transporter room, Spock laid a hand on Kirk’s shoulder. “Jim. You need rest.”

“I’m fine, Spock.”

“No, you’re not. The loss of Doctor McCoy has affected you more than you are willing to admit. Now, you are taking out your frustration on his daughter.”

“Christ, Spock, I’m not  _ that _ bad.”

“...Yes, sir.”

Jim turned and stared at Spock. “Was I that bad?”

“Sir, you just yelled at a 13-year-old girl whose father is presumed dead.”

“...oh fuck.”

“Sir, I am required to remove you from duty. You are emotionally compromised, not to mention exhausted. You are unfit for work at this time.”

“Spock, no. I have to find Bones!”

“The search for the doctor will continue as planned while you rest in your quarters, Jim.”

“No!”

“Captain, if you do not go to your quarters, I will be forced to call security.”

Jim could feel a tightness in his chest that wasn’t normally there. “Spock, you don’t understand, I have to find him, he’s been gone for so long, oh God he’s probably dead by now, I can’t do this without him! He’s down there and if he’s not dead he will be soon, and what if he died alone? Oh God, that’s exactly what he’s been of afraid of this whole time, he didn’t want to die alone in space—”

“Jim.”

“—he’s gone, oh God, he always said I’d be the death of him but now  _ he’s _ the one who’s dead and it’s my fault, I shouldn’t have sent him on this mission—”

Jim stopped. His hands were shaking. His breath was coming in short gasps. 

“Oh God, I’m having a panic attack, and he’s  _ not here,  _ Spock, I need him, please, I can’t do this by myself—”

Spock stepped forward. “Jim, please come with me to your quarters. You will feel safer there.” The Vulcan gently took Jim’s arm. Before they left, Spock turned to Scotty, who had been standing at the transporter the whole time. “Clear the halls on the way to his quarters.”

Scotty nodded. “Aye, sir.”

_ Two hours later _

Joanna stood in front of Uhura, arms crossed. “I want to see him.”

“I’m not so sure that’s a good idea,  _ kidege _ …”

“I don’t  _ care _ if it’s a good idea, ma’am. He owes me an apology.” She looked down at the floor. More quietly, she said, “And I owe him one.”

Uhura nodded. “I’ll call Mr. Spock. I don’t know if he’ll let you see Jim, but I’ll try. You stay, here, okay?”

Joanna sat down on the bed. “Yes, ma’am.”

Uhura smiled sadly at the girl.  _ She has her father’s Southern charm _ . “I’ll be right back.”

As she walked down the hallway, she had to wipe a tear from her cheek. She quickly composed herself before entering the bridge, however. Stopping next to the captain’s chair, she leaned in close to Spock. “ _ Mpendwa _ , Joanna is asking to see Jim. Is he okay now?”

Spock sighed and steepled his fingers. “It is impossible to say whether or not he is ‘okay’. I believe he will not be truly able to return to duty until the doctor is returned safely to us. However, I believe his panic attack has passed now. He will be composed enough to see Joanna without frightening or offending her again.” He turned to her, then gently tilted her chin up to look into his eyes. “ _ Savas _ , are you all right?”

She blinked back tears and nodded. “I’ll be fine. I’m just worried about Doctor McCoy.”

He gave her a rare, small smile. “We all are,  _ savas _ . However, I believe we may be making progress with the planet’s government. They are willing to send out search parties for him.”

“That’s amazing! Should I tell Joanna and Captain Kirk?”

“I fear that may not be wise. Should the planetary authorities go back on their word, their combined wrath may be too much for us to keep in check.”

“Understood. I won’t tell them.”

“Thank you, Lieutenant.” He held out his fingers for a brief  _ ozh'esta _ , which she readily accepted.

As Uhura returned to Joanna’s quarters, she allowed herself to feel a faint glimmer of hope.  _ The government on the planet is going to help… they  _ have _ to help. _

She beeped at the door. “Joanna? It’s me, Lieutenant Uhura. I’m back, would you let me in?”

...silence.

“Joanna? I’m coming in now, okay?”

There was still no response. 

Uhura quickly typed in the override to open the door. “Joanna? Oh God, she’s not here.”

She turned and jabbed the button on the wall communicator. “Spock, Joanna is missing. She left when I came to the bridge to talk to you.”

On the bridge, Spock folded his hands in his lap. “Understood, Lieutenant. I will send Security to find her. Please go inform the captain.”

She quickly walked to the corridor with his quarters. “Captain Kirk? I need to speak with you, it’s important.”

“...Captain Kirk?”

Once again, she rushed to the wall communicator. “Spock, Jim isn’t answering the door. I can’t override his lock like I could for Joanna’s room.”

“I am on my way. Please call Doctor M’Benga to use his medical override.”

“Yes, sir.”

Spock and the doctor arrived at around the same time. Spock nodded at the door for M’Benga to open.

Geoffrey’s fingers flew across the keypad, typing in the CMO’s passcode.

The door opened to a darkened, empty room. Jim wasn’t there.

A PADD sat on his desk, giving off faint illumination. Spock picked it up. “It is an audio recording.”

_ Captain’s log, stardate 2262.32 _

_ It’s been four days since we lost contact with Bones. My best friend and his daughter are both down on that planet somewhere, and what am I doing? Sitting here, panicking like a child. _

_ Joanna is  _ so much  _ like Bones. Every time I look at her, I see him in her eyes. She was so determined to make it down to Beltane VII to find him. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that she found a way to do it. _

_ Marla Collins is going to  _ murder _ me— if Bones doesn’t get to me first. I deserve it. _

_ I’ve taken 2 phasers and 2 rifles from the armory, as well as extra phaser banks. I know exactly what I’m walking into on this planet. The odds aren’t great. Nevertheless, I will find Joanna and bring her back. _

_ Regulations have prevented me from stepping foot on this planet for four days. I’ve been sitting up here helpless while the man I—  _

_... _

_ Helpless while the man I love is down there. I’ll be damned if I let them stop me from protecting his daughter. _

__

_ God help me. _

Spock and Uhura stared at the PADD. Uhura covered her mouth, tears filling her lovely eyes. “Spock… what do we do?”

His deep baritone echoed in the empty room. “We wait.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mpendwa — beloved — Swahili  
> Savas — fruit — Vuhlkansu
> 
> this scene with jim having a panic attack hits harder now that i've actually had a panic attack  
> when i originally wrote it i was just basing it off of research


	4. Chapter 4

_Meanwhile on Beltane VII_

“Joanna Lee McCoy.”

“Seriously? I feel like we’ve been over this. You’re not my dad! You don’t get to act like it just because he’s missing!”

“Joanna, I don’t have time to argue this with you. We are beaming back to the Enterprise right now. Once there, you will wait _in your assigned quarters_ — which will be guarded this time, make no mistake of that— until your stepmother arrives to take you back to Earth. Let’s go.”

He took the stolen phaser out of her hands and flipped open his communicator. “Scotty? I’ve found her, beam us up now.”

“...Scotty? Two to beam up.”

Joanna frowned. “Shouldn’t he be answering?”

Jim glared at the communicator. “Yes. He should. Scotty, can you hear me?”

As they stood there, a laugh came from the communicator. “So, Captain, you’ve finally come down to our planet. We thought taking your doctor would be enough.”

Jim’s face went white. For a long moment, he was silent. Then, in a low, dangerous, voice, he spoke. “What did you do with him.”

“We’ve been holding him hostage. Better hurry up and find him, Captain. I’m not sure how much longer he’ll last… But here, as an incentive, I’ll allow you to speak with him.”

There was a pause, then a rough Southern accent. “Jim...?”

“I’m here, Bones, it’s me, what’s going on?”

“...took Nurse Jansen... dead...”

“Bones, I need to know where they took you.”

“Home base— _ngk_ —”

“Bones!”

The rebel commander chuckled. “He can’t hear you anymore, Captain. I’m afraid our security man is a bit overzealous when dealing out punishment. Your doctor will wake up... possibly.”

“I swear to God, you son of a bitch, if you lay another _finger_ on him—”

“Ah, ah, ah, Captain. I hardly think you’re in a position to be threatening us.”

“You better believe I’m in a position to threaten you. You didn’t think I could go on without him? I’ve got news for you, buddy. You made one mistake. Just one, but oh BOY was it a mistake. You wanna know what you did?”

“Really, Captain, I feel as though—”

“You told me that he’s still alive. I’m coming for you, motherfucker. You better get scared right now.”

“Oh? And what’s to stop me from killing him right now?”

“You seem like a smart man. You and I both know that you’re not gonna kill him. You know that as soon as he’s dead, you have _nothing_. Right now, Doctor McCoy is the only leverage you have. So, what are your demands?”

Joanna whipped her head around. “Wait, what?”

He held up a finger to silence her. “What are your demands?”

“We want you, Captain. You will be our hostage while we negotiate with the Federation. Trade your life for his.”

“I see. Unfortunately for you, that’s not gonna happen.”

“Don’t you care for him, Captain?”

Jim gritted his teeth. “I care for him more than you could _possibly_ understand. That doesn’t change the fact that he would murder me if I traded myself for him. Now, the way I see it, you and I have reached an impasse. I won’t give you what you want, you won’t give me what I want. That means this conversation is over.” He flipped the communicator closed. “Come on, we need to move. He’ll have tracked our signal here.”

“What about my dad?”

“We’ll find him, but we need to find someplace to hole up and make a plan. Let’s go.”

_One Day Later_

Jim dodged a phaser blast, ducking behind a tree. “Fuck! Jo, what’s your status?”

“My phaser’s almost out of juice, sir!” She was tired, dirty, and disheveled, but she still retained her air of confidence and competence.

“I’ll cover you while you get that communicator, Jo!”

“I know that! I’ll do my best, but I’m not sure I can!”

“Something’s better than nothing, kid. Let’s go.”

The two ran out from their cover towards the guerilla fighters. Jim screamed profanities as he shot at them, distracting them from Joanna sneaking around the back.

She snuck up behind one of the rebels, knocking him out with a phaser shot to the back. Jo quickly grabbed the man’s communicator and ran back to Jim. “I got it, let’s go!”

He grabbed her hand and they ran like hell.

Once they returned to their shelter, he closed the makeshift door and turned around. “I hope you know what you’re doing with this, Jo. I sure as hell don’t.”

“I’m gonna try to listen in on transmissions coming from their headquarters, sir.”

He nodded, and watched her work for a couple minutes. He eyed her. “So, what do you plan on doing with your life, Jo?”

“Jim, is that really important right now?”

He chuckled. “You sound like your dad. Do you plan on going into medical?”

Jim laughed outright at her face. “Guess not then. Diplomatic law, like your mom? Or maybe just diplomacy, or maybe just law—”

“I’m busy right now, Captain.”

“I bet you’d make a good dancer. Has Marla been teaching you?”

She rolled her eyes. “I don’t have to do what my parents do, you know.”

“So what are you interested in? You look like you know your way around that communicator. Are you interested in communications?”

“No.”

“Science?”

“No.”

“Security?”

“God, no.”

“Are you at all interested in Starfleet?”

“...yes.”

Jim sighed. “Do I have to drag _everything_ out of you, kid?”

She whipped her head around and narrowed her eyes. “I’m not a kid. I’m 13.”

“Okay, sorry.”

After a long pause, she finally spoke. “You can’t tell my dad.”

“Scout’s honor, Jo.”

“Seriously, he would hate me if he knew.”

“Jo, your dad could never hate you.”

“I want to be an engineer.”

There was a pause.

“Yeah, I can see why he might not like that.”

“He’s _always_ telling me about how engineers are constantly in Medbay, and how he hates that they do stupid stuff, and he shouldn’t HAVE to treat so many burns, but every time he tells me what they did to get those burns I’m like ‘oh that sounds cool’ and then I feel guilty because I know he’d _flip it_ if he knew that that’s what I want to do, and—”

“Hey, hey, Jo, relax. Your dad may not like some of the decisions that engineers make, but he wouldn’t be upset if that’s what you want to do. You know Scotty is one of his best friends, right?”

“...I didn’t know that.”

“He probably didn’t tell you because he thought Scotty would be a terrible influence on you, but yeah.”

Joanna blinked. “...I need to keep working on this communicator.”

Jim nodded, a small smile playing across his lips. “Jo, he wants you to be happy. He’s not gonna be mad at you for wanting to be an engineer.”

“Shut up, shut up, I’ve got it!”

“ _szzzk_ — found them yet — MEAN THEY KNOCKED OUT AN ENTIRE — don’t care what it takes, _get them_ —”

“I’ve got their location!”

Jim breathed a sigh of relief. “You’ve got a solid lock?”

“Yes, and I’ve mapped it. It’s about 15 miles from here, sir.”

“We can do that. Trust me.”

“Yeah, but how quickly?”

“I bet you we can get there by nightfall tonight.”

“15 _miles_ , Captain.”

“Yup. Come on, I have an idea.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> y'all i am so so sorry it's taken me so long to update this thing. college, as it turns out, is a bitch. i also started a new job, and finally got to spend real time with my boyfriend, and all of that means i haven't really had a chance to write in the past few months. luckily it's winter break soon and i don't go back to school until february, so hopefully updates will come a little bit quicker now.


End file.
